Missing Pieces
by bethchilds34
Summary: High School R&I. Slightly AU. Jane and Maura meet in high school and become friends. Neither has had much luck with friends or life in general. Could they help each other? Eventual Rizzles. T to be safe.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: Hi, guys! So this is my first Rizzoli & Isles fic (in case any of you didn't know that). I love this show and the characters and the books and what Sasha and Angie and the writers and producers did to make the show as great as it is.**

**So this is a high school, slightly AU fic. It doesn't have a specific year or anything, but it's definitely going to be set closer to today than it would be if it was canon following the show (therefore putting these characters in high school in the 90s I think). **

**Please let me know what you think and if I should keep writing and adding to this fic. Updates will probably be sporadic (if you've ever read anything by me before, it's probably gonna be a lot like that. I update when the muse hits me and sometimes it may disappear for a while). Well, that's enough of my ramblings. Please review and let me know what you think! Thanks!**

O.o.O

"Jane Clementine Rizzoli, if I have to call you one more time, I'm taking away your car keys for a week!" Angela yelled at her daughter through her bedroom door.

Jane knew it was an empty threat, but she got out of bed anyway. She paid for her car and anything having to do with it. Plus, it was her only way to get to school _and_ she would be driving Frankie now, as well. "I'm up, Ma! Quit hollering!" she shouted back at her mother through the piece of wood that separated them. She heard her mother huff, but then heard the woman's footsteps retreating down the hall.

Jane got dressed the way she always did: grabbing whatever was on top. She emerged from her room a few minutes later wearing jeans, a light green tee shirt under a dark blue hoodie, and black skater shoes. Her hair was in its usual mess, cascading down her back. Her black backpack was slung over her left shoulder, lighter now than it would be again until June, when summer finally graced Boston with its presence.

She walked into the small kitchen after dropping her bag near the front door and put two slices of cinnamon bread into the toaster. Jane wasn't a big believer in breakfast, but Angela would never let her leave without eating something. After she and Frankie finished eating, they said goodbye to their mother and younger brother, Tommy, grabbed their bags, and headed out to Jane's small blue car that was parked on the street in front of their house.

"Are we stopping at Nick's today? I brought money," Frankie asked as they pulled away from the house. Nick's was the little corner store that Jane stopped in every now and again to pick up some candy before school. Jane was skinny as a rail, but she always had starbursts on her. She liked them because, while you couldn't have food in class at Saint Mary's, almost all of the students chewed gum and starbursts could be played off as gum, so Jane got away with eating them. Nick's sold big bags for only two dollars that could last Jane a week if she was careful.

"Yeah, I'm almost out. But we gotta make it fast, I don't wanna park behind the football field," Jane said as they stopped at a red light.

The two Rizzolis stopped at Nick's long enough for Jane to get a bag of starbursts and Frankie to get a pack of gum and a candy bar. Jane popped a colored square in her mouth as she waited for Frankie to pay and then they drove to school. Saint Mary's was only about four miles from their house, but it took them over ten minutes to get there. It was Frankie's first day of high school, but it was the halfway marker for Jane, who was entering her junior year.

They scored a decent spot, but didn't immediately get out of the car. They still had time anyway. "You nervous?" Jane asked, turning to look at her brother.

"Nah. It's just high school," Frankie said. "And Shane said he'd actually be coming to school, instead of homeschooling this year. Their dad agreed not to make them tour again until school lets out." Frankie looked hopeful. He hadn't seen his best friend in months because of his band's most recent tour.

"That's great, Frankie," Jane said, offering up a rare smile. Even though she'd had to get up for school today, it hadn't been a terrible morning: she'd gotten her starburst supply for the week, she was currently with her favorite family member, and her father hadn't been home this morning.

Her parents hadn't exactly been supportive when she'd come out to them. Her mother had just ignored it and ignored that fact about Jane, never talking about it or bringing it up. But her father, he'd always been a bit rough with his children to being with, he'd seen Jane being gay as a problem he could fix. He never hurt her _too_ badly or where people could see, but Angela let it happen. She loved her daughter, but she was also trying to protect herself. Frank Senior had a temper that nobody wanted to be on the wrong side of. Jane tried to avoid him at all costs, but every now and then, he'd get his hands on her and she always wished she'd kept her mouth shut.

She was out only to her immediate family and a select few friends. Of her family, only Frankie truly accepted her. Their little brother, Tommy, was too much like their father, but he tried to accept her, too. She'd never had a girlfriend, but Tommy would tease her sometimes. Their mother would defend him, her baby, her youngest child, saying he was too young to understand. Jane just shrugged it off, like she did everything else. If she acted like she didn't care, maybe one day she wouldn't. Caring was too hard. It hurt too much.

A minute later, Jane and Frankie decided to get out of the car. They grabbed their backpacks from the backseat and started walking towards the school. A few people they passed on their way into the building and then once in the building nodded their heads towards or said hello to Jane, but the most anybody got in return was a slight nod of her head. They parted ways on the second floor and Jane told Frankie, "Good luck," before heading to her assigned locker on the third floor.

Her best friend, Barry Frost, was already waiting for her when she turned the corner. "Hey, Jane," he said when she got close enough, but he didn't move from his position of leaning up against the locker next to Jane's. Normally, Frost, like anybody else, would extend a hand to clap someone on the shoulder or just to wave, but Jane didn't like being touched and she didn't like hands flying around, even if she knew that the person that hand belonged to was not her father and was not going to hit her. Frost knew this, and he knew the reason why, and he did everything he could to help Jane. He knew that Jane trusted him, otherwise he wouldn't know anything about her personal life. Jane was a very private person and not many people were allowed inside her inner circle.

"Hey, Frost," Jane said, opening up her locker. She'd brought some binders from her house and didn't want to carry them around all day for no reason. While she was in her backpack, she grabbed two starbursts. She extended her hand out to Frost who took the orange one, leaving the pink for Jane because he knew it was her favorite flavor. "Ready for junior year?" she asked, closing her locker and opening the small square.

"Hell yes. Ready for junior year to be over. Sadly, it hasn't even started yet." He grimaced and Jane laughed. Frost and Frankie were some of the only people who were able to get Jane to smile or laugh on a regular basis.

"Seriously, I am so ready for high school to be over," Jane agreed, leaning back against the row of lockers next to Frost. They stayed there for a bit, watching students trickling in. the freshman were easy to spot, looking scared and lost. A couple of them were brave enough to approach the pair and ask for directions. Remembering their own experiences on their first day two years previously, Jane and Frost helped out the scared newbies.

The homeroom bell rang, signaling that students should get where they needed to be in the next three minutes or they would be marked as being tardy. Jane and Frost finally moved from their spot to walk down the hall. Their homerooms were opposite each other at the end of the hall where their lockers were located. Jane was in Mrs. Evans homeroom and Frost had Mr. Kelly. Both were science teachers, though neither had had Jane or Frost in any of their classes.

Jane walked into the familiar room. At Saint Mary's, you had the same homeroom all four years, so Jane knew everybody in there.

No. Wait. There was a new face, one she'd never seen before. It was a girl with dark blonde hair, wearing a dress Jane was sure cost more than she made in a month working at the bowling alley near her house. She looked nervous and out of place. And she was sitting in the corner of the room where Jane always sat during homeroom.

Not wanting to find a new seat and give up her corner, Jane walked over to the new girl. "Hey," she said, sitting down in the desk next to her. "Are you new here?" Of course she already knew the answer.

"Yes, I am. My name's Maura. Maura Isles. What's your name?" the girl said, immediately stretching her right hand over towards Jane.

Jane flinched involuntarily before answering. "I'm Jane," she introduced, ignoring the other girl's outstretched hand.

Maura retracted her hand a few moments later, realizing Jane wasn't going to shake it. She frowned a little, but let it go. She didn't really know how to interact with public school kids. "It's very nice to meet you, Jane," she said. The classroom was slowly filling, but there was no sign of Mrs. Evans.

"You, too. So where did you transfer from?" Jane asked, again eyeing Maura's outfit. It wasn't what most Saint Mary's students wore, or what they could afford.

"Until this year, I attended a boarding school in France," Maura told her.

"You must have hated it, to put an ocean between you and it," Jane said, almost smiling.

"I loved the school, but I moved back to Boston to be closer to my parents," Maura replied, not breaking out in hives because it was the truth, just not the whole truth. She'd moved back to Boston because, even after three years there, she didn't have any friends there. She had been miserable.

Jane was about to say something else when their homeroom teacher finally showed up. The woman quickly took attendance before handing out the student's schedules. Jane hastily looked hers over. She had one teacher on there who she'd had before, Mr. Diaz, for algebra 2. As she looked over her sheet, she noticed a new name, Ms. Monroe, for English. She must be new as well.

Jane turned to Maura, who was also examining her own schedule. "Let me see," Jane said, holding out her hand.

Maura slid the piece of paper across the desk to Jane, who didn't flinch this time when Maura's arm got closer than she normally allowed people to get. "Not bad," she said, looking down the list. "AP Biology? You must be wicked smart. Mr. Nelson's pretty cool. Oh, hey, we have English together."

Maura smiled and opened her mouth to say something, but the bell rang for them to go to their first class. "So, I'll see you in English, then?" Maura asked as Jane handed Maura back her schedule as the class got up to leave.

"Yeah, see you later. Hey, do you want me to point you in the right direction for your first class?" Jane questioned. She was talking more than she usually did to someone she didn't know, but that didn't even register with her. Maura was easy to talk to.

After Jane told Maura which way she needed to go, the two parted. Maura walked down the hall away from Jane smiling. Not even half an hour into her first day of public school and she'd already made a friend. Maybe.

O.o.O

**A/N: So, what did y'all think (yes, I'm from Boston but I say y'all. You can deal with it). Please review and let me know if I should continue this or just bury myself under a rock, never to write anything again. Thanks for reading (if you made it this far).**

**Also, all spelling/grammar/just general mistakes are all mine because this is un-beta-ed. So, sorry. I'm trying to make this as clean (grammar-wise) as possible, but I'm only one person who can only do so much. Okay. Bye.**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hey, guys! Thank you all so much. I really wasn't expecting the reception I got for chapter 1. And this will probably not happen again (or very often if it does happen again). I am terrible with updates. I wish I wasn't, but I don't control the muse (excuse me while I channel Alison Hendrix right now).**

**Anyway, on to chapter 2! Please review, guys! They make me so happy and any suggestions y'all have are welcome (again with the y'all thing. I really am from Boston, I swear…)!**

O.o.O

Jane's first three classes bored her beyond belief, as most first day classes usually do. All teachers do on the first day is hand out the syllabus and then talk about the syllabus to no end. The most annoying teachers try to do icebreakers with the class, which everyone except for the teacher hates. Jane had never really liked math, but she knew she could have done worse in terms of the teacher. She liked him well enough, just not the subject he taught. Her second class was Spanish and when that teacher, Señorita Lopez, tried to get the class to speak Spanish out loud, Jane's felt rusty after a summer spent not practicing the language. Chemistry was next and that teacher had the most boring, monotone voice Jane had ever heard. If that class had lasted any longer, Jane would have fallen asleep. All of the students in the class jumped out of their seats when the bell rang, all in a hurry to leave.

Her fourth class was English and Jane looked for Maura when got walked into Ms. Monroe's classroom, but didn't see her. Jane did what she always did and grabbed a seat in the back. She wasn't sure if Maura would even want to sit next to her, but Jane made sure there was an open seat next to her anyway. About a minute after Jane sat down, she saw Maura walk into the classroom, looking around for a spot to sit. A few moments later, she scanned the back row and her eyes lit up and a smile brightened her face when she saw Jane and the empty seat to the brunette's left.

Maura was still smiling as she approached Jane. "Do you mind if I sit here?" Maura asked, gesturing to the empty desk.

Jane waved noncommittally. "If you want to," she said. She still wasn't sure about this girl. She dressed so preppy. Jane didn't really like preppy girls. Jane owned exactly one dress: the one her mother forced her to wear to church every Sunday.

Maura's smile brightened as she sat down next to Jane. "How were your first three classes?" she asked Jane as students continued to file in.

Jane shrugged and scrunched her nose a little. "Boring," she told Maura.

"Really?" the dark blonde asked, sounding surprised. "I loved all of mine! I had history, AP Biology, and trig," she told Jane.

"Sounds like a rough morning," Jane commented.

"No, it was wonderful! I love learning," Maura said.

Ms. Monroe walked in then, looking a little nervous. She was definitely new and she looked very young, younger than most of the other teachers. She gained more confidence as class went on, starting with roll call and then, like everybody else, going over her syllabus. After she finished talking about the books they would be reading in class this year, she told the class, "Okay, guys. That's all I have planned for today. You can just talk for the rest of class, just please keep it at a reasonable level."

Since she hadn't moved the class into alphabetical order and everyone was already sitting with their friends, everyone turned and formed groups almost immediately. Maura turned to Jane after a few moments, not knowing anybody else in the class and noting that Jane hadn't turned away to talk to anyone else either.

Jane noticed that Maura looked a little disappointed and couldn't help but smile at the blonde. "We still have eighteen minutes left of class," Maura said dejectedly.

"Yeah, I know. Great, right? All of my other teachers so far have droned on for the entire period today," Jane said. It was the truth, but she was also trying to get a raise out of Maura.

It worked. "But that's what they're supposed to do! We're in school to learn," Maura said.

"Well, if it makes you feel any better, this is probably the last day that this will happen. Tomorrow they're going to throw the books at us."

Maura looked shocked. "Why would they throw books at us!?" she asked, alarmed. "That would never happen in private school! They could really hurt somebody!"

Jane couldn't help but laugh at the appalled look on Maura's face. "It's just an expression," she tried to explain. "It means that we're going to get a lot of work tomorrow. They're going easy on us today because it's the first day."

"Oh, okay. At my last school, they would throw the books at us, so to speak, on the first day of classes. It was a very difficult school, but we learned a lot," Maura said,

"I bet you did. It seems so crazy to me that you would give up that school. You seem to have really liked it there," Jane said. It seemed so different from Saint Mary's, where you basically just had to show up every now and then and they let you graduate.

Maura looked away then, but only for a second before turning back to Jane. "While I enjoyed the education I received, I was lonely. I didn't have any friends there," she told the brunette, her voice low and sad.

Jane instantly felt bad for bringing it up. "I'm sorry," she said quietly.

"It's in the past now. You don't need to be sorry. There's nothing you can do to change it," Maura said.

"I can't change it, but I can still feel bad about it. Having no friends sucks. But, hey, you've gained at least one today," Jane told her, smiling encouragingly.

Maura looked at her with wide eyes and a huge smile. "We're friends?" she asked in a whisper.

"Yeah, sure, if you want to be," Jane said, slightly embarrassed.

"I'd love to be your friend, Jane," Maura declared.

The bell rang then, making them both jump as they hadn't been expecting it. "What class do you have next?" Jane asked, standing up and grabbing her backpack from where she'd put it under her desk when she'd sat down.

Maura consulted her schedule before answering, "I have a free period."

Jane smiled. "Cool. Me too. But I hate the teacher I have it with, so I'll be spending most of my free time in the library," she told Maura. "Who do you have for your free period?" the students could either go to the library during their free period or go to an assigned classroom.

"Mr. Taylor," Maura said.

"You should come with me, then. That guy is kind of creepy," Jane told her. "But you can do whatever you want."

Maura smiled. "I think I'll take your advice and go with you, if you don't mind."

"Alright, then, let's go," Jane said, starting to walk down the hallway. Maura hitched her bag up a little higher on her shoulder and followed her new friend.

O.o.O

**A/N: So, what did you think? Sorry this one is a little shorter than the last. I don't normally write short chapters, but, as stated above, I am not in control of the muse.**

**Please let me know what you think! I love getting reviews, I feel like they help me fix whatever I'm doing wrong. Thanks guys!**

**And, sorry, again, don't get too used to these fast updates. I'm going to try to get on a schedule for updating this, but that may take a while.**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Hi! Thank you all so much for favoriting this fic! For some reason, it's really been flowing for me recently, hence all of the updates. This chapter picks up right where chapter 2 left off. Happy reading!**

O.o.O

On their way down a flight of stairs and then across the building, Jane pointed out a few things that she thought Maura might find useful: the computer lab, some classrooms that were oddly numbered and therefore harder to find, and where her real free period teacher's room was.

Maura committed it all to memory, not wanting to get lost. It was bad enough that she was new, she didn't want to get lost as well. She had learned that most of the students here had been classmates since elementary school. She was at a major disadvantage when it came to making friends because of this and because of the fact that she was painfully socially awkward. She was very smart and had an almost photographic memory so she could remember things and recall them very easily. Not wanting to be left out, she would try to input herself into conversations by using these tidbits of information. More often than not, however, they worked against her, not for her, and she would end up even further outside of the group than before she had spoken up.

The library was much smaller than Maura had anticipated, having gotten used to the one at her old school, but this would have to do. Jane led Maura to a corner in the back, set apart from the rest of the library a little by some shelves of books students almost never took out. There were three sets of two chairs each with a table between them. Jane sat in the seat in the corner and dropped her backpack on the floor. Maura tentatively sat opposite Jane, placing her shoulder bag on the table.

Jane sighed as she leaned her head back. It hit the wall with a slight _thunk_, but she didn't seem to notice as she closed her eyes.

"Are you alright?" Maura whispered, sounding concerned. She was worried about Jane's head, but she also realized that this was the most relaxed she'd sane Jane all day. Jane should be comfortable here; she obviously knew a lot of people, even if Maura hadn't actually seen her interact with anyone except for her.

"Yeah," Jane said. "Why wouldn't I be? Also, you don't have to whisper. Nobody comes back here."

"Well you just hit your head against the wall and didn't seem to notice and this is the most relaxed I've seen you all day," Maura explained.

As soon as the words left the blonde's mouth, Jane tensed up again. She opened her eyes and looked at Maura almost suspiciously. She wasn't used to people noticing her. Only Frost and Frankie, but neither of them would have said anything like that out loud.

"Well, I'm fine," Jane told her. "Do you always just say whatever's on your mind?" she asked Maura, her eyes closing again, but being more gentle as she leaned her head back against the wall again.

"Yes. Most people seem to find it annoying. I can go sit somewhere else… if you'd rather," Maura said sadly. She tried not to be sad about it; she didn't want to bother Jane who, though denying it, clearly had her own problems.

"I didn't say you had to go," Jane told her. "I didn't say that I mind it."

Maura smiled and openly appraised Jane, which was easy to do as the brunette's eyes were still closed. She was dressed in clothes Maura would never wear. Jane's sweatshirt was at least a size too big and her jeans were a little too long, both obscuring the girl's frame. Her shoes were clunky, but they seemed to fit. The outfit seemed very _Jane_, even if Maura didn't know her very well.

"I'm sorry if I'm annoying you," Maura said.

Jane opened her eyes again. They looked softer, kinder. "If you were annoying me, I'd tell you." She reached down and opened up a small pocket in her backpack. "I don't know about you, but I'm hungry. I always bring my lunch because the food here sucks," she said, pulling out a brown paper bag, then pulling a sandwich out of the paper bag. "You didn't bring anything, did you?" she asked.

Maura shook her head. "I didn't know what to expect. The food at my boarding school was quite good. I figured that I would go down to the dining hall here and see if there was a salad bar or something at lunch time. What time do you go to lunch here?" she asked Jane.

Jane shook her head, not even knowing where to begin with this explanation. "Okay, first of all, it's called a cafeteria, not a dining hall. Public school, remember? Second, the food here is awful and you should avoid it at all costs. Third, there is no salad bar. Fourth, we go to lunch during this period, so you could go basically whenever you wanted, but like I said, you don't want to go down there." Jane pulled out half of the sandwich from the bag and extended it to Maura. "Here, have this," she said, stretching her arm out even more when Maura didn't immediately take the triangle.

"What is it?" Maura asked as she finally took it from Jane, examining it.

Jane's mouth fell open. "You've seriously never had peanut butter and fluff before?" Jane asked incredulously.

"What is 'fluff'?" Maura asked perplexed. She'd eaten food from all over the world and never once had she come across anything called 'fluff' before.

"Its marshmallow. It's good. Just take a bite, so long as you're not allergic to peanuts," Jane prompted.

Maura took a small bite from one of the corners. It was surprisingly good, if not fatty and a bit sweet. "What do you think?" Jane asked when Maura had swallowed the bite.

"It's good," Maura said with a smile. "Though the fat content-"

Jane cut her off. "You're not going to ruin peanut butter and fluff for me, so just stop right there," she said. Maura would have been scared that she'd upset Jane, but she saw the small smile on the brunette's face.

"Thank you, Jane," Maura said, taking another bite. Jane just smiled at her as she took a bite of her half as well. "Why are you being so nice to me?" Maura asked after she swallowed. She wasn't used to people treating her like this.

"I can't just be nice for no reason?" Jane asked.

"Normally people don't have this attitude toward me. Like I said, I tend to annoy people," Maura confessed.

"Well, I don't find you annoying. A little quirky, maybe, but not annoying. I wouldn't share my sandwich with you if I thought you were annoying."

What Jane said made Maura feel warm inside. She could get used to having a friend. "Thank you," she said again.

Jane's face went a little red. "You don't have to keep thanking me, Maura. This is what friends do. They're nice to each other. They share food sometimes. You really haven't had any friends recently, have you?" Jane inquired, looking a little sad.

"No. the nannies I had growing up were kind of like friends, but since they were paid to watch me, I don't think I could really classify them as friends. I've always been smarter than people my own age, so they find me intimidating and awkward," Maura explained.

"Nannies? Your parents didn't raise you?" Jane asked perplexed. She didn't have a childhood memory that didn't involve either one or both of her parents.

Maura shook her head. "They're very busy people," she explained to Jane.

"Too busy to raise their own kid?" Jane asked incredulously.

"Well technically I'm adopted, but, yes. They're still too busy, but I'm older now."

"Did you always know that you were adopted?" Jane asked, feeling worse for Maura by the minute.

"Yes, my parents never tried to hide it. I don't know who my biological parents are. My parents adopted me when I was three days old. They've always been my parents. I've never looked into who my birth parents were," Maura told her.

"Wow. Frankie and I used to tell our little brother Tommy that he was adopted, but he would start to cry and then my Ma would yell at us to stop," Jane said, almost smiling at the memory.

"You have two brothers?" Maura asked.

"Yeah, Tommy and Frankie. Frankie just started here too, he's a freshman. Tommy's eleven, he's in the sixth grade," Jane told her. "Do you have any siblings?"

"No, it's just me. I've always wanted a brother or a sister," Maura said.

"Well having brothers sucks, let me tell you," Jane promised.

"At least you always have someone there," Maura said.

"Yeah, someone in your face when you least want them there," Jane insisted. "It's not all bad. Frankie's a cool kid. He's the only one in my family I can stand most days," Jane relented.

"You don't get along well with your parents?" Maura asked.

"No," Jane said shortly.

"Why not?" Maura asked and Jane tried not to cringe.

"Can we talk about something else, please?" she requested.

"Okay," Maura said, a little confused. She and Jane seemed to be getting along so well. "Can I see a picture of your brothers?" she asked.

Jane smiled and pulled her phone out of her pocket. "Sure, let me find a good one," she told Maura. She went through her pictures quickly, looking for the one Frost had taken of the three Rizzoli siblings on the Fourth of July. "Here," she said, handing the phone to Maura.

Maura smiled as she looked at the picture. Jane was wearing a red shirt and had a huge smile on her face. Her arms were wrapped around a boy on her back who could only be her brother, wearing a blue shirt and waving a flag. A boy about Jane's height stood next to them wearing a white shirt and holding a flag like the younger boy. "That was taken at the parade downtown. My Ma insisted that we wear the colors of the flag and then made me take the boys even though I was supposed to be going to the parade with Frost," Jane said.

"Well, I don't see why you would tease Tommy about being adopted. He clearly looks just like you and your other brother," Maura said, handing the phone back.

"We just did it to piss him off when he was bothering us," Jane told her.

"Who's Frost?" Maura asked.

"My best friend. His name is Barry Frost, but he hates his first name so everybody just calls him Frost."

"How long have you known him?" Maura asked, surprised that he hadn't come up before, if he was Jane's best friend.

"Four years. After his mom divorced his dad, she moved up to Boston from Virginia. We met because he lives near me and, the summer he moved here, some guys from the neighborhood and I were playing baseball in the park and he wandered in and asked if he could play. He was small and scrawny, so they put him in the outfield, but he was a good player. We became friends before school started up again that fall. Haven't looked back," Jane told her.

Maura wished that she could meet somebody that easily. Although, it was pure luck that Jane had chosen to sit next to her in homeroom and was actually nice to her. "Are you still friends with the other people you had been playing baseball in the park with?" Maura asked.

Jane did a funny nod-shake thing with her head. "We're acquaintances at best. We all grew up in the same neighborhood, so we've been around each other our whole lives. But I can only tolerate them for so long," she explained. "You never had anybody like that growing up?"

"I knew the children that belonged to my parent's friends, so I guess I did a little. But we never played baseball. We never really played anything. At the functions my parents brought me to, I would either find a quiet corner to read in or my parents would want to show me off, so I would be with them for the evening. Honestly, that was the longest I saw my parents, sometimes. They always had something going on when I was young. My mother is quite prominent in the art world and my father does a lot of business overseas, so neither was around very much," Maura told her.

"That's really sad, Maura," Jane said when Maura finished.

"It's okay. I'm used to not seeing them," Maura assured her.

"Yeah, but you shouldn't have to be."

"Well that's the way it is."

"You said you moved back to Boston to be closer with them?" Jane asked, remembering what Maura had said earlier.

"Yes. I figured, now that I'm older, it will be easier to have a relationship with them," Maura said.

"Has it been?"

Maura paused before answering. "No. They haven't spent much time in Boston since my return," she answered.

Jane just shook her head. "Well," she said, "they don't know what they're missing out on."

"They're very busy people," Maura tried to explain to Jane, not wanting her to be right.

"Yeah, but Maur, you're their daughter," Jane quipped.

"I can take care of myself."

"And I'm sure you always have," Jane said, not waiting to see if it was true. She had a hunch. "You just shouldn't have to. Hell, my father isn't exactly my biggest fan, but he still takes care of me," she let slip without thinking.

Maura looked sad. "Your father doesn't like you?" she asked, concerned.

"He doesn't like some things about me." Jane really didn't want to get into this. She barely knew Maura. She wasn't one to let people in easily, but, somehow, this girl was breaking through all of her barriers without even seeming to try too hard. Jane didn't know what to think about this. "It's fine, Maur, don't worry about it." She couldn't look at Maura any longer, the girl's stare was too intense. It was like she was trying to see into Jane's mind.

"My parents don't spend a lot of time with me, but I know they love me. And I'm sure your parents do, too," she tried to reassure Jane.

But Jane knew exactly what her father thought of her. It didn't always feel like love. "Sure," she agreed quickly, not wanting to get further into this conversation than they already had. She dug her hand into her backpack, coming out with two starbursts. "Want one?" she asked, extending her left hand out to Maura, the two colored squares resting on her palm, one yellow, one red.

"I thought eating wasn't allowed in the library," Maura said.

"Then you're clearly forgetting about that half a sandwich you ate not too long ago," Jane pointed out. "Nobody comes back here. Nobody cares. Just take one."

Maura reached out and took the yellow one. It was her favorite color. "What is this?" she asked, turning the still-wrapped square over in her hand.

Jane's jaw just about hit the floor. "Don't tell me you've never had starbursts before," she told Maura.

"Okay, I won't," Maura said, smiling at the look on Jane's face.

"Seriously? You've never had one before?" Jane asked in disbelief.

"No. Is it some type of candy?" Maura asked.

"Yeah. How have you never had one?"

"My parents never let me have candy as a child. When I got older, I would sometimes sneak a fudge cluster from the cabinet where my mother kept them, but that was it," Maura explained.

Jane shook her head. "Oh Maura Isles, I have so much to teach you."

O.o.O

**A/N: What did you think? Hopefully this longer chapter makes up for chapter 2, which is a much shorter chapter than I usually write. Please leave a review and let me know what you think! I have a few things planned, but if anybody wants to see something specific, let me know in a review or a PM. Thanks guys!**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Hi guys. So my life got extremely crazy recently. Today was a particularly long day and the long and short of it is that my four month old baby sister got admitted into the hospital. Thankfully what she has is treatable, but it's doing a number on my family. She's so little and it's hard because now half of the parental unit is staying in the hospital with her for the foreseeable future.**

**On a happier note, here's chapter 4. Sorry it took so long, but hopefully the length makes up for it. Thanks for reading! Let me know what you think!**

O.o.O

"Good morning, Jane, Frost," Maura says, walking down the hall towards the two. She's taken to arriving a little early to school to see Jane most days. She comes to see Frost as well, but she doesn't get along with him like she does with Jane. She likes him, though. Like Jane, he doesn't give her weird looks when she talks about obscure subjects. He doesn't make fun of her.

"Hey, Maur," Jane greets with a smile.

Frost had noticed a difference in Jane since she and Maura had become friends and he was glad. Jane had been too sad before. He'd worried that she might be depressed, and she had every reason to be. He and Jane had never talked about it, though. He didn't know how to bring it up with her. He also didn't want to be right. He and Jane had been friends for years and he didn't want to mess that up.

"Morning, Maura," he said to the blonde before turning back to Jane. "So, as I was about to say, my family's going away this weekend. I'm sorry, Jane. I just found out," he told the brunette.

Jane got a pained expression on her face, but only for a second. But that was long enough for both Maura and Frost to notice. "That's fine. Don't worry. I'll find another place to crash," Jane told him, running her left hand through her hair haphazardly. Since it was Friday, she had very limited options.

Before even thinking through what she was going to say, Maura blurted out, "You can come over to my house, Jane."

Jane looked at her, confused. "What?" she asked, trying not to hope. She really didn't want to be home all weekend.

Maura didn't know any other way to phrase it. "You could stay at my house, this weekend, if you'd like. My parents are away and it's very quiet there," she told Jane, hoping the brunette would say yes. Maura had never had a sleepover before. "We could watch movies and maybe order pizza." Maura knew how much Jane liked those two things. They'd gotten quite close over the last two weeks, spending their free period every day talking in the library.

The bell rang, prolonging Jane's answer. The three friends walked into their homerooms and Maura followed Jane to the corner they always sat in. "So…?" she prompted Jane as they sat down in their usual seats. "Would you like to come over this weekend?" she asked again.

Jane turned her upper body to face Maura, wincing as she did. Her father had come home early the night before and Jane now had bruised ribs to show for it. He had just lashed out and she hadn't been quick enough. Jane smiled a tight smile to try to cover the pain, but Maura had seen. "Are you alright?" she asked, reaching her hand out towards Jane.

Jane jerked away, physically moving to the opposite edge of her seat before her brain even registered what she was doing. Maura still didn't know why Jane did that, but of course she had her suspicions. She hadn't voiced them out loud yet, not wanting to embarrass Jane or push her away. Being too blunt with people was part of the reason Maura had such a hard time making friends. She always found herself saying the wrong things.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Jane said quickly, crossing her arms over her chest protectively. "You really wouldn't mind having me over this weekend?" she asked tentatively.

Maura smiled as warmly as she could. "It will be so much fun! We can stay up late and watch movies and… What else do you do at a sleepover?" she asked.

"You've never been to a sleepover?" Jane asked.

Maura just shook her head. "Not unless you count boarding school, which is like a constant sleepover."

"I don't count that. Well, I'll think of some things we can do then," Jane said as the bell for their first class rang.

Maura smiled even bigger. "That sounds great. I'll see you in English. You did the homework, right?" she asked, just like she did every morning.

"Uh, yeah," Jane said, suddenly looking distracted.

Worry creased Maura's face again. She was concerned about Jane. "You'd tell me if something was wrong, wouldn't you?" she asked.

"Yeah, yeah, sure," Jane said as they parted ways, Jane headed for math and Maura for history.

O.o.O

In English, Maura found out that Jane had only been half telling the truth. She only had some of the homework done. Before class started, the brunette was furiously trying to answer the last few questions on the worksheet, but she was having a difficult time because she hadn't read the whole chapter that these questions were asking about.

Maura never cheated on anything, but she leaned over and whispered the answer to the question Jane was working on anyway. She couldn't help but feel bad for her friend who was clearly struggling with something. Jane flashed her a small, grateful smile and wrote down the answer just as Ms. Monroe walked into the room.

The two were quiet for the rest of class because Ms. Monroe had planned something that would take the entire class period, so they didn't talk again until their walk to the library.

"Thank you for helping me with that answer," Jane said quietly as they sat down in the back corner. While Jane normally flopped into the cushioned chair, today she gently lowered herself onto the blue fabric. Maura noticed this, just as she had all of Jane's other odd behaviors that day.

"I'm really worried about you, Jane," Maura told her, sitting across from her friend as she had every day for the past few weeks.

"Well, I'm fine, Maura. I can take care of myself," Jane said, not looking at her.

"I'm not questioning your independence. You've been acting strangely all day and I-"

Jane cut her off. "I'm fine, Maur. Can you just trust me on that? I just had a rough night is all," Jane told her, her tone a little harsher than usual.

"I'm sorry, Jane," Maura said quietly.

Jane instantly felt bad for what she had said. "No, I'm sorry. I yelled at you for no reason. I'm just not used to people taking care of me or worrying about me. I'm really sorry, Maur," Jane said.

"So," Maura said, hoping to change the subject, "did you think of anything for us to do this weekend?"

O.o.O

"This is my car over here," Jane said, leading Maura over to her little blue car. Frankie was running late, so Jane didn't have to make him move to sit in the backseat. Jane opened the passenger door for Maura to climb in. "We just have to wait for Frankie," Jane told her, getting into the driver's seat. "I'd have to run home anyway to grab a few things, so it all works out. You're sure you don't mind me crashing with you this weekend?" Jane asked for the fifth time.

Maura reached her hand over to put on top of Jane's, which was on the center console. But Jane pulled her hand away quickly. "It's perfectly fine, Jane. I'm really looking forward to it," she promised.

Maura turned to look out the windshield and noticed Frankie walking toward the car. She'd seen a few pictures of him, so she instantly recognized him. You couldn't mistake him for anyone other than Jane's brother. He shot the two girls in the front seat a weird look, but got into the back without complaint. "Hi," he said when he closed the door.

"Hey, Frankie. This is Maura," Jane introduced. "Maura, Frankie."

Maura turned around and smiled at the boy who looked a little squished back there. He was taller than she was. "If you want to switch seats, I don't mind riding in the back," she told him.

He shook his head. "Nah, it's all good. We don't live too far away, anyway."

They made small talk while Jane drove them to the Rizzoli's house. When they got there, Jane breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that both of her parent's cars were absent from the driveway. While she definitely didn't want to deal with her father, right now, she didn't want to see her mother, either. Angela had let her down yet again and Jane wasn't ready to face her.

"You can stay here or come in. I'll be quick," Jane told Maura as she put the car in park and then turned it off.

Maura unbuckled her seatbelt. "I'll come in with you, if you don't mind," she said, hoping Jane wouldn't take back her offer.

"Come on in," Jane said, leading Maura toward the already open door that Frankie had just disappeared through.

Jane's house was so much smaller than Maura's. It also only had two floors, while Maura's had three. You could see all the way through the house from the front door right through the living room. Maura didn't know how five people lived here. Her house was twice the size for only three people.

"Do you want to see my room or wait down here?" Jane asked hesitantly as she watched Maura survey her house.

"May I see your room?" Maura asked.

"Sure. It's upstairs," Jane said, gesturing to a staircase to their left. Maura followed Jane to the second floor. "That's my parent's room," Jane said, pointing to the door nearest the staircase, "and Frankie and Tommy's room," the door in the middle of the hall, "and my room," a door partially covered with a Red Sox poster of the previous year's team.

The first thing that Maura noticed when Jane opened her bedroom door were the walls. Though she had only known Jane for a little over two weeks, the last color she would have expected Jane's bedroom to be painted was pink. And yet, there it was. Jane had obviously done her best to cover the walls with as many sports and band posters as possible, but the pink shone through in patches.

Jane didn't want to watch Maura assess her room, so she went straight to packing, throwing a few essentials into a small duffle bag.

"Your room is pink," Jane heard from behind her.

"My Ma painted it when I was little. I didn't like it then either. But she won't let me paint over it," Jane told her, turning around only once she had double-checked that she had everything she'd need for the next two days. "I'm ready if you are."

Maura nodded and they both turned to leave Jane's room. Before they passed Frankie and Tommy's room, Jane knocked on the door. Frankie opened it almost immediately. "Keep an eye on Tommy till Ma gets home. She shouldn't be long," Jane told him.

Frankie just nodded. "See you on Sunday?" he asked.

Jane nodded. "Have a good weekend. Stay out of trouble. Call if you need anything."

Frankie just nodded again. Maura found it all kind of odd. Frankie didn't look upset that Jane was leaving. On the contrary, he looked almost relieved. After making sure Frankie would look after Tommy, Jane turned to leave again, this time not stopping anywhere else before getting to the front door.

O.o.O

"Holy shit, Maura, this is your _house_?!" Jane exclaimed, pulling into the driveway. She knew the houses on Beacon Hill were big, but she wasn't prepared for this.

"Language," Maura corrected, as she always did. She didn't like swearing, something Jane did on occasion. "And, yes, this is where I live." Maura opened her door, but noticed that Jane made no attempt to open her own. "Are you going to come in or keep gawking at my house all weekend?" she teased.

Jane snapped out of whatever was going on inside her brain and finally opened the driver's side door. Both girls collected their backpacks from Jane's backseat before Jane followed Maura into a house that was at least twice the size of her own.

The foyer was open and Jane could see into the living room and the kitchen, which was very big and open and everything looked like it was pulled straight out of a magazine. "Wow," was all Jane could get out.

"Do you like it?" Maura asked, a little unsure.

"It all looks so perfect. Like nobody even lives here, it's just on display," Jane said, looking around at all of the art and decorative pieces placed around on the walls and tables.

"Well, it's just me, for the most part," Maura said. She and Jane had already talked about how Maura's parents weren't home much, as both were very busy and important people in their respective fields.

Jane made a face that was somewhere between sad and angry. She couldn't believe Maura's parents just left her alone to fend for herself. Maura had told her that they'd been doing it since she was eleven and that was why, a year later, she'd gone to boarding school. To be surrounded by other people.

"So, what do you want to do first?" Maura asked, trying to change the subject. She wanted to have a fun weekend and the current conversation wouldn't let them get there.

"We could watch a movie. Or bake cookies. Or order pizza. Or all three of those," Jane suggested with a smile.

"I think we have cookies in the cabinet if you want some," Maura said, starting to walk over.

"Haven't you ever baked cookies before?" Jane asked. It was something she used to love doing with her ma when she was little and she liked to make them every so often when she was feeling like baking something. Jane found that baking was calming.

"No," Maura answered. It was the way she answered many of Jane's questions, almost all of which made her feel inadequate in some way. Jane had done all of these fun-sounding things that Maura hadn't ever done.

"Well, now we have to bake cookies. I'll teach you," Jane said confidently.

O.o.O

After finding all of the ingredients, Jane proceeded to teach Maura how to bake cookies. They spent almost an hour getting the dough ready because Maura had to measure everything twice, just to make sure they had the exact right amount. Jane tried to tell her that the directions were more like guidelines than actual rules you needed to follow, but Maura wasn't having any of it.

"If they didn't want you to follow the rules, why would they have printed out exactly how much you need?" Maura demanded.

"You don't have to be exact about it. If you go a little over or a little under, nothing bad is going to happen. They're going to come out exactly the same," Jane tried to tell her.

But Maura was having none of it. She proceeded to measure everything to the letter. Jane just watched, amused and smiling. It was all so Maura. Exact and precise.

When they finally got the dough into the oven, Maura watched them like a hawk, determined not to let them burn. Jane cleaned up a bit as Maura watched the dough cook. They had made a bit of a mess of the pristine kitchen and Jane felt a little guilty. But Maura had had a huge smile on her face the entire time, not caring one bit about the countertops or the floor, which all had a light sprinkling of flour by the end.

O.o.O

After all of the cookies had been made, they ordered a pizza for dinner. They had also ordered a salad because Maura wasn't going to let Jane just fill them up with bad food and she had made Jane promise to eat some of it.

Not wanting to eat in the pristine living room on the white couch, they sat at the table and ate dinner before going into the living room and watching a movie. Maura had let Jane pick and she chose _Speed_ from the slightly outdated collection of DVDs on the shelf in the corner. Maura had never seen it before, but ended up enjoying it. Jane had seen it before, but it didn't stop her from laughing out loud at each joke as though she'd never heard them before.

After _Speed_ was over, they decided to change into their pajamas before putting another movie in. Maura changed into her purple silk pajama set and Jane put on her dark blue flannel pants and a grey tee shirt that was a few sizes too big on her small frame.

It was Maura's turn to pick a movie and she put on a documentary on make-up that spanned from the ancient Egyptians and Chinese dynasties. Jane, though thinking she was going to hate it, actually enjoyed parts of it. By the time it had ended, it was past eleven and Jane was more tired than she realized when Maura shut the TV off.

"I could just fall asleep right here," Jane said, leaning back and getting a little more comfortable on the couch, pulling the shared blanket up a little higher.

"You will not fall asleep right here," Maura said, appalled. "We have three guest bedrooms that are just upstairs."

"Too far," Jane said, snuggling down further into the surprisingly comfortable couch.

"My room is at the top of these stairs," Maura said, pointing to the stairs on the other side of the living room. "Can you make it that far? I would hate for you to sleep on the couch, Jane."

"Okay," Jane agreed, allowing Maura to lead her upstairs. Maura's bedroom was almost exactly like the rest of the house: photo shoot ready. Maura had added a few things that made it her own, like the periodic table on the wall over her desk, but it looked as immaculate as the rest of the house.

Jane didn't spend long looking around the room because she was so tired. "Um, which side do you usually sleep on?" she asked Maura, gesturing toward the bed.

"Normally this side," Maura said, pointing towards the left side.

"Okay, I'll sleep over here, then. Unless you want me to go sleep in the guest room," Jane said, now unsure. Even at sleepovers in the past, she'd never shared a bed with anyone else.

"It's fine, Jane," Maura told her, moving towards her side of the bed. "I'm tired as well." Maura pulled back the covers, revealing dark red sheets beneath the heavy purple blanket that covered the queen sized bed. "Come on. I don't bite," Maura teased.

Jane smiled as she walked the few steps to her side of the bed. "Good, because that would be a terrible way to wake up." She laid down on the bed and couldn't help the contented sigh that came out of her mouth. "Wow your bed is comfy," she said, closing her eyes almost instantly.

"Mmhh," Maura agreed, already half asleep herself, a huge smile on her face. This was the best day she'd had in a long time, all thanks to the now sleeping brunette next to her.

O.o.O

A/N: Wow, that was much longer than I thought it was going to be. I hope you liked it. The next chapter will be heavy, just as a forewarning. I'm hoping to have the next one up soon, but, like I said in the AN at the top, my life is a little busy. Please let me know what you think of this! Thanks guys!


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Hi, guys. Long time, no update. I had wanted to put this up last Tuesday night, but then life got extra crazy and things got away from me and now here we are.**

**This chapter gets a bit heavy, but I'm not going for graphic details, so the rating is staying at T unless anyone thinks I should change it. Let me know.**

**If anyone wants to see anything in this, let me know about that too. I have an idea as to where I want this to go, but ideas rock because I don't have anyone to bounce ideas off of before I post these chapters.**

**Also, for anybody who read and reviewed mentioning my sister, she was only in the hospital for two days and she's doing really well. Almost back to normal. Still as smiley and happy as ever. Thank you all so much for caring! I love you all. Okay, long note over. Happy reading! Please drop me a review and let me know what you think.**

O.o.O

The sun was what woke Jane up the next morning. Or at least, she thought it was the sun that had woken her up. She felt a warm body move next to her and she instantly tensed up, forgetting where she was. Wide-eyed, she looked around the room and, remembering the previous night, looked down to see dark blonde hair splayed out on the pillow to her left, Maura's body tucked against her side, Jane's right arm under Maura's neck.

_How the hell did we get like this?_ Jane wondered. She didn't want to move her arm, for fear of waking Maura up, but she also didn't want Maura to get the wrong idea, even if Maura didn't actually know that Jane was gay. Being gay doesn't mean you're a pedophile, though some people believe that.

Jane felt Maura stir again. She looked down to see sleepy hazel eyes looking up at her. "Hey," Jane said, her voice still gravelly from sleep.

"Good morning," Maura said, making no efforts to move. She was extremely comfortable. She didn't get much physical contact from her parents even when they were around; she never had. They weren't huggers and Maura had never learned how to ask for contact, which she craved. Waking up with someone like this, snuggled together and warm, was the best thing Maura had experienced in a while.

"How, uh, how did you sleep?" Jane asked awkwardly, arm still around the dark blonde.

"Very well. And you? This bed has to be better than the couch," Maura said, smiling because she knew she was right.

"Yeah," was all Jane could say.

Her stomach growled then, making Maura laugh. "Would you like some breakfast? One of the things our cook did teach me to make is pancakes. And we have fruit to go on top," Maura said, knowing what Jane's answer would be.

Jane couldn't help but smile back at her. Though waking up with Maura snuggled into her side had been momentarily frightening, it was nice after she had figured out where she was and who was next to her. The contact hadn't scared her like most did. "That sounds great," Jane told her.

Maura moved to get up, but Jane was comfortable, so she figured she'd stay an extra minute or two when she heard Maura gasp from beside her. When she'd gotten up, Maura had moved the blanket off of herself and it had shifted on Jane as well, whose shirt had ridden up a bit in the night to rest a little under her bra, giving Maura a full view of Jane's abdomen, of which, about half was covered in purple bruises.

"Oh, Jane," she said, her hands flying to cover her mouth in shock.

Jane had been so relaxed she'd forgotten about the bruises until Maura had spoken. She quickly adjusted her shirt to cover her torso while struggling to untangle her legs from the sheets and get up out of the bed.

"It's fine, Maura," she said, not turning to look at her.

"That's why you were in pain yesterday," Maura said. It wasn't a question. Jane didn't answer. "Jane, it's not fine! How did that happen?" she spoke again to Jane's turned back.

"I walked into a wall," Jane lied quickly and badly.

"Jane Rizzoli, that's a lie and we both know it," Maura said sternly.

"Seriously, Maura, just drop it," Jane said, crossing her arms over her chest protectively.

"You could have internal bleeding. You need-"

"I can walk and talk and breathe without it hurting. I've had worse," Jane said, still not looking at Maura.

"Internal bleeding is bad, Jane. Left unchecked, it can be fatal," Maura told her. "It's not the same as a broken bone; it's not always painful."

"It's probably just a cracked rib or two. And they can't do anything for that except prescribe medication, which insurance pays for, well some of it, anyway. And I can't do that. I'll be fine in a week," Jane assured her.

"Do you not have insurance?" Maura asked.

"I do, but-" Jane stopped herself.

"But what?" Maura pried.

"But _he_ won't pay the bill when it comes and I can't afford a hospital visit and then a prescription. It's a few hundred dollars that I don't have," Jane told her, still adamantly looking anywhere else besides at her friend.

"He who? Your father?" Maura asked, the pieces coming together. Jane could only nod, not wanting to lie any further to Maura. "_Oh, Jane_," she said again, taking an involuntary step forward, but Jane saw it and took two steps back. Maura felt ready to cry. Everything was making sense now. Why Jane shied away from contact. Why she backed away whenever anyone ever reached toward her. "_I'm so sorry_," Maura whispered.

"It's not your fault, Maura," Jane said, finally meeting her eyes. "It was my-"

"Don't you dare say that this was your fault, Jane Rizzoli! Your… He…" Maura was lost for words as the tears finally fell from her eyes.

"No, Maur. Don't cry. Please," Jane said, taking a step towards her.

Maura didn't move, knowing it would deter Jane. Jane, the first person to be nice to her at her new school. Jane, her first real friend. Her first best friend. The last person she ever wanted to scare away.

Jane took another step and was only an arm's length from Maura now. "I'm sorry, Maur," she told her.

"Why on _Earth_ are _you_ sorry?" Maura asked, wiping her tears from her cheeks, her eyes never leaving Jane's.

"I didn't want to dump that on you. It's not yours to bear," Jane told her.

Slowly, Maura moved her right hand towards Jane's left. She stopped before touching the brunette, letting Jane come the remainder of the way, smiling through another on-set of tears as she did. "Nobody should have to bear it. And especially not alone."

"There's nothing I can do. I don't have the money to move out. I don't have anywhere to go," Jane told her solemnly.

"How long has this been happening?" Maura asked, moving to sit on the bed, pulling Jane lightly with their still-clasped hands. She couldn't help but notice how well their hands fit together.

"He's always been a bit rough with us. But it started getting bad a few years ago," Jane told the floor next to Maura's feet. She felt ashamed. And weak.

"What about your mother and brothers?" Maura hated to ask, but she felt like she needed to know. She had to protect Jane.

"Ma stays out of the way. He's only this bad with me. That's why I usually stay with Frost's family on weekends. I work after school three days a week. The other two I avoid the house," Jane said.

"I'm so sorry. I didn't know." Maura couldn't think of anything to say. This was an awful reality, but she'd never faced it or knew anyone who had before Jane. Maura loved to learn facts, but facts wouldn't help Jane.

"Not many people do. Just you and Frost and obviously my family."

"Why doesn't your mother help you?" Maura asked before she thought it through.

Jane sighed. "She's afraid of him. He doesn't go after the boys so much because they're going to carry on the family name. I won't be. And he doesn't respect my 'life choices'," Jane air-quoted the last part. She'd known Maura for just about two weeks now. She'd never opened up like this to anybody she'd only known for that long. But it was all just tumbling out of her mouth. But this was Maura, who hadn't judged her up to this point.

"'Life choices'?" Maura quoted back, confused.

"He doesn't like that I'm gay. He thinks this is the cure," Jane said in a low voice.

Maura felt her heart ache for her friend. She couldn't imagine not being accepted by her parents. And, even if they didn't accept her, they were away so much that it didn't matter. "Jane, I'm so sorry," she said, moving her free hand slowly and carefully to rest on Jane's knee. Jane flinched a little, but made no effort to move away from the touch. Like Maura, she also craved touch, but the little she got at home scared her. She knew that not everybody was like her father, but she knew any of them could hurt her just like him. That was what scared her and made her move away.

"It's not your fault, Maura. You don't have to keep apologizing," Jane told her.

"I didn't see it. I didn't see that you were hurting."

"I didn't want you to see it. Like I said, it's my burden to bear," Jane said, looking up at Maura, her eyes wet, but no tears had fallen.

"And I said you don't need to bear it alone. I'm here, Jane. I'm right here," she whispered. Jane's shoulders hunched and a tear rolled down her cheek. She wiped it away, but not before Maura saw it. "Jane?" she asked.

"What?"

"Can I… Can I hug you?" Maura asked. She had never asked to hug or be hugged and she didn't know if Jane would let her.

Jane smiled a little, her chin trembling only slightly. "Yeah, Maur, you can hug me," she said.

Maura stood up and pulled Jane along with her. When Jane finally stood up, Maura let her hand go and tentatively reached up to put her arms around Jane's neck. Jane wrapped her arms around the shorter girl's waist and rested her head on Maura's shoulder. Maura tightened her arms just a bit and another tear fell from Jane's eye, followed quickly by another one, and then another.

Maura held on until the tears stopped and Jane's breathing calmed down. She knew that hugging released a hormone called oxytocin, which triggers dopamine in the brain which makes you feel better. She hadn't realized how powerful it was before.

She felt Jane loosen her grip a little and followed suit, letting her arms fall from Jane's shoulders as Jane wiped away the tear tracks with her shirt sleeve. "Thank you," she told the brunette.

Jane looked confused. "For what?"

"Letting me in." Maura smiled a little, even though her heart was breaking a little inside. She knew it was not physically breaking because that wasn't possible, but if she had to describe the feeling, that was how she would do it. "I know you have a difficult time doing that. So do I. But I'm here for you, Jane. You're welcome to stay here any time."

Jane felt another surge of tears at Maura's confession, but she willed them to stay in as she asked another question. "What about the other thing?" she asked.

"What that you're gay?" A nod. Jane was afraid of the answer, though she had no reason to be. "Jane, don't be silly. Your sexual orientation doesn't bother me in the slightest. I mean, there are so many reports that state everyone is on the spectrum somewhere. My parents are very progressive and I was taught growing up that sexuality is fluid and ever-changing." Maura knew she could go on, but Jane's real, genuine smile stopped her oncoming lecture. "Now, how about breakfast?"

O.o.O

"Jane, could you get the vanilla extract for me? It's in the cabinet next to the plates," Maura asked as she cracked an egg into the pancake mixture that she'd made from scratch. Instant pancake mix didn't exist in the Isles house.

"Vanilla?" Jane asked as she crossed the kitchen to get it.

"Yes. It was the cook's special secret. It makes them sweet," she said.

"So you don't know how to make chocolate chip cookies, but you know a special secret ingredient for pancakes. You are quite the enigma, Maura Isles," Jane said, handing over the bottle of vanilla extract.

Maura just smiled as she added some of the vanilla to the batter. It felt like something had changed between the two since Jane's confession in her bedroom. She felt like there was less of a wall between herself and Jane; it felt more open. It was a wonderful feeling, knowing that Jane trusted her enough to tell her everything she had.

As she cracked a second egg to add to the mixture, she shivered a little. The house was big and empty and cold and she was only in a short-sleeved sleep shirt and thin pants. Jane noticed the shiver from her place opposite Maura, sitting at the bar.

"You cold?" Jane asked. When they had come downstairs, Jane had grabbed a gray hoodie from her bag that was still by the front door. The previous night, while making cookies, she'd taken off her black hoodie and had forgotten where she'd left it. It wasn't until she had her gray one on that she saw the black one hanging over the back of the couch.

"A little. I usually remember to put something on before coming downstairs. I just forgot today," she told Jane. "I'll just run upstairs and grab something quickly and then I'll come back and finish this."

"No, don't do that. Hold on," Jane said, getting up from the bar stool and grabbing her black sweatshirt from the couch. "Here," she said, reappearing and holding it out to Maura, "you can just wear this."

"It's yours, Jane. I don't want to get any batter on it," Maura protested, though secretly a little thrilled. She'd never shared clothes with anyone before and the sweatshirt did look warm and comfortable.

"I don't care about the sweatshirt. That's what washing machines are for," Jane insisted, taking another step closer. "Seriously, take it."

Maura reached over and took the hoodie from Jane. It was soft. She'd never owned anything like it, preferring sweaters. Fashion sense had been drilled into Maura from a very young age by her mother. She slipped it on over her head and was immediately immersed in Jane's scent, lavender and a hint of vanilla.

Since the sweatshirt was big on Jane, it was also big on Maura. She rolled up the sleeves so her hands were free, but she reveled in the length. It was so comfortable and it smelled like Jane, a scent she was learning quickly to love.

O.o.O

**A/N: So what did you think? Please let me know! I have a few ideas, but I'm always open to suggestions.**

**Also, just wondering, do any of you guys watch Orphan Black? Seriously the season 2 finale messed me up. If you don't watch it, go watch it right now because it is a masterpiece. **


End file.
